


Red And Gold

by LokisgameRPF



Category: The X-Files RPF
Genre: F/M, Fluff and Hurt/Comfort, Friendship/Love
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-13
Updated: 2019-03-13
Packaged: 2019-11-16 16:43:43
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,512
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18098195
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LokisgameRPF/pseuds/LokisgameRPF
Summary: “Bottom line is, it’s you and me again, buddy, think you can handle that?”





	1. Chapter 1

“Take care of yourself.” She said before the doors closed behind her.  
The house felt awful quiet, cold by California standards. Groceries left forgotten on the counter as he sat on the sofa with elbows on his knees and his head hung low. The only sound was the wind outside, wild parrots and click of paws on wooden floor. Cold, black nose touched his hand, the dog’s face somehow worried.  
“58, how old is that in dog years?” He asked him ruffling his ears. Brick cocked his head, looking questioningly.  
“If 10 years is like 60 and I’m 6 times that, so 58 times 6, 8 times 6 is 48,” math made his head ache. “Fuck that, I’m a writer. It’s a lot, ancient, a walking dinosaur.” He babbled, scratching the dog behind the ears, making his eyes close in delight. “Bottom line is, it’s you and me again, buddy, think you can handle that?”  
His phone vibrated on the kitchen counter, crawling over the marble. Brick wagged his tail, thinking it was a new toy he brought for him.  
“I don’t feel like talking to anyone,” he grumbled, “I’m too old to get up anyway.”  
The dog jerked his head out of his hands and trotted to the kitchen, where he sat down, looking up, waiting expectantly, as if a treat was about to fall down. The phone buzzed again and he barked.  
His overexerted knee hurt and was starting to feel almost chronic, he should get that checked out probably. What was the name of that new-age clinic in Chicago? The dog barked again.  
“Okay, okay,” he dragged himself to the kitchen and picked up the phone, addressing the dog, “but you’ll do the talking.”  
He finally glanced at the caller ID and sighed, sliding to the floor and leaning against the wall in surrender. Back to petting, he tapped the green button.  
“Hollywood’s most unwanted."  
“Well, hello to you too, sir,” she spoke playfully, sounding close enough to reach. If he only could sink his hand into the glossy plastic. “What’s wrong.”  
“I’m old, unemployed and alone,” he whined, sliding fully to the floor. Brick’s head landed under his arm and he kept scratching him, the faithful beast. “I think I might pick up directing again.”  
“I didn’t mean it that way, you know that.”  
“So what, it’s true.”  
“You’re a writer, you forgot that?” He sighed, not in the mood to be made feel better, yet. “It’s M, right?”  
“She moved out.” It didn’t hurt, it just felt like a general bummer. “She’s with her fitness trainer now,” haha, “trying to make something out of her life, as she should, really.”  
“Good for her,” she praised, cheer never fading from her tone. “How are you feeling about it?”  
“What day it is?” He evaded the question bluntly.  
“Wednesday? It’s September, don’t you have calendars in Cali?”  
“No seasons to judge by either, all glow, all the time.”  
“Honey, you’re a New Yorker, you need that gold and red Central Park vibe.”  
“Viiibe”, he drawled, “listen to you, all down with the kids these days.”  
“Come on,” she was getting impatient with him, he knew the tone, “stop moping around, I won’t believe it’s all about the breakup.”  
“It’s not, it’s just that…” he broke of, embarrassed, saying it out loud made it true.  
“David?” Back to concerned, God she knew him too well, there was no use in lying.  
“West is working now, acting.”  
“I know, she and Piper met in Vancouver last month.”  
“Miller’s in school, too cool to hang out with his dad,” he glanced at the dog, his graying snout resting on his chest, warm and heavy comfort. “It’s just me and my dog, and I have a feeling he’s gonna eat me one day, when I’m gone.”  
She laughed, and the sound made him smile, her scrunched up nose tattooed in his mind till the end of time. “You really let yourself go this time.”  
“I have aches and pains no yoga can touch.”  
“I’d run you a bath,” she offered, warmer now, “a nice hot bath.”  
“That would be nice.”  
“Come back to New York,” she said, as if she had a plan, “I have a week off to spare, I’ll meet you there and we’ll go somewhere.”  
“Like where?” He was all over the tabloids for almost a year now, he was sick of it.  
“I don’t know,” she was warming up to the idea, “somewhere warm but where there’s still autumn. France?”  
She had friends there, strangers, and he felt old, too old for skulking through shadowy alleys. “Nowhere to hide there.”  
All of a sudden, she lit up. “I know!” He could almost feel the glow, “Japan!”  
His eyes grew wide. “What?”  
“Polite people, hot springs, quiet resorts and amazing sushi.” She recited, intuiting the things he might want.  
He stayed quiet, mulling it over. If they could hitch a ride on a private jet, they might just slip under the radar. And since the last trip was such a bust…  
“Come on, just the two of us, I could use a vacation,” she teased, lowering her voice to that purr that gave him chills of the best kind, “hot baths under red and gold leaves, silk bathrobes, quiet gardens and padded floors.”  
He closed his eyes and imagined her creamy white skin against glossy black fabric, untying the sash. He could almost hear the whisper of silk. Even the smallest prospect of being with her made his cock twitch.  
“I could leave the dog with the kids,” he said cautiously, liking the idea more with each minute.  
“No one will find us,” she promised and believed it, after all it wouldn’t be their first time. “I’ll ask my team to find us a quiet spot.”  
“Gillian,” he said quietly, blues replaced by the blue of her eyes, “I love you, you know that?”  
“I know, love you too, I’ll call you back with the details, go pack.”  
“Yes ma'am.”


	2. Chapter 2

They got off the plane at Tokyo International. Baseball hat and sunglasses on his nose. Coat wrapped tightly around her slender body. He matched her stride, fast and purposeful, their arms linked, cutting through the crowd. She was the guide, he carried the bags, his slung over one shoulder, hers rolling behind them like a faithful dog.  
A driver waited to take them to the train station. They boarded the Shinkansen and he fell back asleep, spearing a sour thought for the armrest between their seats.  
Someone squeezed his hand and he woke up, startled. “David, you have to see this.”  
Following her hand he looked out the window to a beautifully hilly country. Red and gold mixed with green, as far as the eye could see.  
“Amazing,” he sighed, chin resting on her shoulder.  
“So peaceful.” She stroked his cheek keeping her tone soft, soothing. “That’s what I like about England, you get to see so much more from a train.”  
“If you have time.”  
“You can always make time.” For a moment he thought he heard a hint of promise, but he didn’t let the thought turn into hope, trying to be grateful for now.  
“You can try,” he amended, kissing her cheek and sinking back into his seat.  
They still had more than an hour to travel, before he could hold her again, that was as much hope as he allowed himself these days.  
Another car waiting, a uniformed driver in white gloves held the door open for her, taking care of the bags.  
“This must be a really upscale place,” he said, buckling his seatbelt.  
“It’s more like an inn than a resort really,” she smiled, looking out the window, snuggling into the collar of her cashmere sweater. “As private as it gets.”  
“You said we’ll have the place to ourselves.”  
“We will, you’ll see.”  
They followed narrow, countryside roads, slowly making their way up and over the hills. The main village was nestled in a valley, and the higher they went, the houses became nicer and the fences discretely higher. He saw an old man pushing his bike along the side of the road, bags of groceries in the basket. Kids chasing each other with sticks raised like swords, living normal kids’ lives, far from prying eyes of cameras and the world. Some tourists walked up the hill, holding hands, making way for the passing, almost silent electric Toyota. No rush, nowhere to be but where they were. Peace.  
“Irasshimase!” A young girl in a modest kimono bowed to them at the entrance, a man in an immaculate suit three steps behind her. They only managed to smile at the girl, before he intercepted them.  
“Good afternoon,” he said bowing lightly, his english perfect, “mr and mrs Petri, I presume.”  
“Yes, hi.” They bowed, shook hands, the man’s smile never faltered.  
“Nice to meet you, my name is Shinichi Osawa and I’m the manager at the Sen Onsen Ryokan, I hope you had a pleasant trip,” he led them to the desk, murmuring something to the woman behind it.  
“Very pleasant, it’s such a beautiful country.” She said, filling in for both of them.  
“You’ve come at the right moment, we expect warm and dry weather all week.” They signed in as the man spoke in a soft, pleasant voice, “we have a villa waiting, with a private bath and a garden, 24 hours room service is provided by our restaurant, which caterers to all tastes, as per our Client’s requirements.”  
“I’m starving,” he said, pulling her back into his side, “can we have something brought in right now? Whatever the chef has lined up for tonight.”  
“Certainly Sir, will that be for two?”  
“Yes, please.” She smiled, her arm slipping around him.  
“Very well then, Hideo will take care of your luggage, and if you’d follow me, I’ll show you to your rooms.”  
A brawny man appeared out of nowhere, bowing and taking the bags and they stepped out of the main house, taking a gravel path through the park.   
After closing the doors on the welcome wagon, he found her in the bedroom, stretched out on the futon, sliding doors to the garden wide open. He noticed the view, russet colored sunset, the crisp air and hum of water, all in the three steps it took to get to her.  
He fell over beside her, nothing more than pillowing his head on her shoulder.  
“Finally.” He sighed, feeling her lips pressed to the top of his head.  
“Can you smell it?” Her hand rested on his chest, rubbing lightly, “burned leaves, the autumn air.”  
“All I feel is silence,” he mumbled, rolling over to hover over her, combing fingers through her short hair. “Think we can disturb it a little?”  
“Before the food is here?”  
“Just a taste.”  
Grinning, he kissed her lips, half of his body pressed against her. No matter how many layers of clothes were between them, he always found a patch of skin to touch, to feel her. Slipping one hand under a satin undershirt, the shiver he caused, made him bolder, cupping one breast through lace and silk. She arched into his palm, hips grinding against thigh as she deepened the kiss, hands searching for skin as well, tugging at his clothes blindly, just as he did. Dizzy, almost drowning, he broke free, registering the burning left by fingernails down his back.  
“Taste, not a bite,” he gasped, “and they say I’m greedy.”  
“I take what I want.”  
“Can you take it easy? I’m an old man.”  
“Will you cut this ‘old man’ crap?” She laughed, pulling his lips back down, but more gentle this time.  
“I could try,” he kissed her back, savoring her mouth, “but only because you asked.”  
“I appreciate that.”  
She didn’t let him speak until dinner arrived and their lips were red and swollen, as if they were a pair of teenagers caught making out.  
“We should have told them to hold the sake.” She said, setting her tiny cup aside. “I want to use that bath tonight.”  
“How did you find this place?”  
“Friend of a friend recommended it, they come here twice a year.”  
He looked to the garden, every tree illuminated by a hidden spotlight, the colors shimmering in the light breeze against the night sky. They could hear voices and laughs, muted sounds of a party near by, but other than that, it was very tranquil. Silence reigned, punctuated by a hollow clap of a bamboo fountain, filling and tipping over at regular intervals, like a very slow clock. They took the trays and ate sitting on the edge of the wooden terrace.  
“This is really good sushi,” he said, stuffing his mouth with a piece of salmon nigiri.  
“It’s all you’re gonna eat all week?” She laughed, dipping one edge of a shrimp roll in soy sauce.  
“At least till Sunday,” he mumbled, wiping his fingers on a napkin before reaching for what she was having.  
“Hey, that’s mine,” she whined, swatting his hand away.  
“C'mon, sharing is caring,” he bargained and tried again.  
“Take the omelette ones, I don’t like those.”  
“Which ones, these?” He pointed to the obvious shrimp, tail and all.  
“No!”  
“This one?” Deep fried tofu.  
“No!” She took one of the pieces in hand and showed it to him. “This one!”  
Their eyes met and he laughed, opening wide and letting her feed him. Her fingers touched his lips and she licked them clean.  
“You don’t know what you’re missing.” He said, taking the next one and dipping it in sauce. “Just try it.” She shook her head, squeezing her lips shut. “One bite, look, it’s a small one,” he bargained, dusting off old tricks mastered around his kids. “We’ll trade, eat this and you can have all the shrimp from mine, deal?”  
Leaning away from his hand, he had to chase after her until she laid back on the floor, forcing him to hover above her again. Soy sauce stained her lips as he touched them and she tried to lick them clean.  
“You don’t want it,” he teased one last time, taking his hand back an inch, but before he could get farther, she jumped him and caught the roll along with his fingertips. A surprised yelp was followed by a peel of laughter. Falling onto his back, he sucked on his fingers, frowning, as she reversed their vantage points again.  
“Sorry, I didn’t mean to.”  
“Dear Penthouse, I fell in love with a cannibal,” he chuckled.  
“Well, you look edible sometimes.” Taking his hand she kissed his fingers better. “Now get up, I’m not feeding you all of this.”  
“You sure?” Grinning hopefully, he drew her in. “I don’t bite, like some people.”  
“Absolutely.” She planted a kiss on his lips and freed herself, sitting up. “I’m eating your shrimp rolls if you don’t get up.”  
“Don’t you dare!” He was up in an instant, snatching a piece of sushi she stole, out of her hand and making her laugh.


End file.
